Dried up gel liner? Cream shadow too intense? Try this

A long long time ago, I watched a video on how to revive dried up gel liners. One of the big reason why I prefer pencil or pen eyeliner instead of gel liner is for fear of it drying out. Besides, why go for gel when there’s just as good option in pencil or pen form? But I like how EnKoreMakeup explains it and demonstrated the process, so if you have a favorite gel liner that is dried up, or don’t want to waste a good gel liner just because it is dried up, this is worth a watch:

Basically you add pure glycerin and a very basic silicone primer to your dried up gel liner, then heat it up to mix thoroughly and it’s as good as new! Now, I’m perfectly content with my pen or pencil liners, but as I was going through my makeup stash I came upon my Maybelline Color Tattoo in Fiery and Tangy. I LOVE the color, but almost never wear it because it’s dry and difficult to spread/blend. It does have great intensity and staying power, so it works well as a liner. However, it’s so intense I don’t wear it as often and wish I could sheer it out for casual wear. I remembered this tutorial and decided to hopefully sheer it out or make it more blendable. It does have a silicone base so it should work, according to the video. I used Smashbox primer and the bottle of pure glycerin I brought from grocery store for $4.

Ingredients

2 pea size cream shadow

1 pea size silicone primer

6 drops of glycerin

a pot

a spatula/mixing utensil

heat source (flat-iron, hair dryer or microwave)

NOTE: As always with any DIY, make sure to sanitize the tools and products used thoroughly before you start. I used face primer because I feel like they don’t dry out as easily as eye primers, and he used Smashbox in the video, so I used Smashbox oil-free face primer. Basically make sure it’s a basic one without too much plant extracts or fragrance that can potentially irritate the eyes.

Let’s get started! You mix the primer, glycerin and cream eyeshadow together and done…….. or at least that was the plan. I don’t like using heat for fear of changing the texture of the products, but the glycerin does not want to play with the cream and looks like condensation, so I have to add a little heat with a hairdryer to make them mix together. Be patient and make sure to mix well, it’s ok to heat it up but don’t melt it into a bubbly liquid. When it’s well mixed and the texture is smooth again, you are done!

From the swatches you can see that I was able to blend it out without hard edge and the color is softer. Because it’s not as dry as before and the cream is softer, it doesn’t tug as much on the skin. As much as I love orange, I don’t wear intense orange often and this gives a nice sheer orange tint to the lid. The lasting powder is still the same, so that’s a relieve and I’m happy about that.

If you don’t want color to be sheered out, add less silicone/glycerin, or heat it up in the microwave for 20-30 seconds until it softens as Wayne Goss suggested (BUT MAKE SURE IT’S A GLASS POT). And that is that. With the summer coming, I’ve been enjoying this sheered out orange quite a bit, especially finished off with a dark brown or dark green liner. Cheers!